Razor-blade sharpener.



G. G. FLOYD.

RAZOR BLADE SHARPENER.

APPLICATION mm JUNE 8.1910.

Patented Apr. 13, 1915.

3 SHEETSBHEET l.

aeofge [2 E d4 Q. Ma 1% MM G. G. FLOYD.

RAZOR BLADE SHARPENER. APPLICATION mm was a. 1910.

Patented Apr. 13, 1915.

772711651120 :3" Zfl JUB' 624M George G; ZZ gd G. G. FLOYD.

RAZOR BLADE SHARPENER.

APPLICATION FILED JUNE 8,1910.

Patented Apr. 13, 1915.

3 SHEETSSHBET 3.

77 L com/av" Ciao/ya GI /7j@d UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

GEORGE G. FLOYD, OF GRANITE CITY, ILLINOIS, ASSIGNOR T0 TWINPLEXMANUFAC- TUBING COMPANY. OF ST. LOUIS, MISSOURI, A CORPORATION OFMISSOURI.

RAZOR-BLADE SHARPENER.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Apr. 13, 1915.

T all whom it may concern Be it known that I, GEORGE G. FLOYD, a citizenof the United States, residing at Granite City, in the county of Madisonand State of Illinois, have invented certain new and useful Improvementsin Razor-Blade Sharpeners, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to razor blade sharpeners and has particularreference to a form of sharpener which is adapted though not restrictedfor use in connection with the double edged blades employed in certaintypes of safety razors.

In my Patent 959,496, granted May 31, 1910, I have described a form ofrazor blade sharpener which has many characteristics similar to thatwhich forms the subject matter of my present application. In suchpatented construction, however, I employ a spring device for keeping therazor blade in contact with the sharpening elements at the requisiteamount of pressure. In my device of the present application the axis ofrotation of the razor blade holder is fixed, and the requisite pressureof the sharpening elements is obtained by the resiliency of the bladeitself. This improvement has rendered the razor sharpener much simplerin its operation, and more economical to construct.

It is a further object of my invention to provide means by which therazor blade holder is prevented from free rotation when the edges of therazor blade are not in contact with the sharpening elements. This resultis accomplished by providing a spring member which has contact with theblade holder, the friction of this member preventing the free rotationof the holder. The construction is such that whenthe spring member abovementioned is removed from its nprmal connection with the razor bladeholder. this holder may be longitudinally shifted to free its endsfromtheir bearings in, the frame of the deviceiandthe holder may bebodily removed from the frame. ifoccasion demands, provided othercooperating elements .have been previously R m d- Tlese.andpthemadvantages ofim-y invention w 1. be .morea accompanying.rawmgs whicnrepresent a pneferredembodiment of my invention and inwhich:

aren by reference to the.

Figure 1 is a perspective View of a razor blade sharpener embodying myinvention, showing the various parts in their normal positions. Fig. 2is a rear elevation of the parts shown in Fig. 1. Fig. 3 shows in perspective, the razor blade holder, the razor blade. the clamping member,and the locking pin, all of these parts being separated from each other.Fig. 4 is a vertical section taken in a plane to the rear of thesharpening elements, and showing the spring member associated with therotatable blade holder. Fig. 5 is a vertical section taken on the planejust in front of the gears associaated with the ends of the twosharpening elements. Fig. 6 is a vertical cross section through thesharpening elements and the rotatable blade holder. Fig. 7 is aperspective view of one of the sharpening elements. Fig. 8 is aperspective View of the wood screw or shaft used in connection with oneof the sharpening elements and on which said element is rigidly mounted.Fig. 9 is a plan view of a modified form of sharpener. Fig. 10 is atransverse vertical section on the line 1010 of Fig. 9. Fig. 11 is avertical section taken on the line 1111 of Fig. 10. Fig. 12 is anenlarged vertical longitudinal section through the blade holder andclamping member with their associated parts taken on the line 1212 ofFig. 13. Fig. 13 is an elevation and partly sectional view taken on theline 13-13 of Fig. 12.

The main frame 11 of my razor blade sharpener is preferably constructedof sheet metal, and has the upturned front and rear portions 12 and 13respectively, which are suitably connected by means of the rods orbraces 14, 14. The front part 12, and the rear portion 13 are eachprovided with a pair of openings therein, a wood screw 15 passingthrough one of the openings of the front 12 to a corresponding openingin the rear wall 13. This wood screw 15 has a threaded portion 16 asclearly shown in 8,and its end .17 'ismade of considerably smallerdiameter'than the main body of the screw for insertion in the opening inthe rear wall 13. v

'Rigidly mounted on thewood screw 15 is a sharpening .roil18, preferablyconstructed 0 i Wood .or some similar mater'a'l. A wood screw 19,similar. tO 'the woo screw 15, except as will presently be described".

passes through the second opening in the front 12 and has its rear endinserted in a suitable opening in the rear wall 13. Or this screw ismounted the sharpening element 20. The use of the threaded screws 01shafts 15 and 19 which I employ is of special advantage inasmuch as theymay readily be removed from the wooden sharpening elements 18 and 20 andsubsequently replaced, in the manner described hereafter.

It will be noted that instead of having a head of the ordinary type, thehead of the screw 19 is in the form of a clutch or ratchet member havinga pair of engaging shoulders 21, only one of these shoulders being shownin Fig. 1. A handle 22 provided with a pin 23 which is adapted forinsertion in a suitable opening in the front end of the screw 19 isprovided with shoulders which are adapted to engage the shoulders 21. Bythis construction it will be evident that the handle 22 when rotated ina clock-wise direction will turn the screw 19 and its sharpening element20, and when rotated in a contra-clock-wise direction, the shoulders ofthe handle 22 will be disengaged from the shoulders 21 of the screw 19,and no rotation will take place. The object of this construction will bemore apparent hereafter.

Associated with the front end of each of the sharpening elements 18 and20 is a gear 24 loosely mounted on the shafts 15 and 19, the front facesof these gears bearing against bosses 25 which are pressed inwardly fromthe front wall 12. Each of the gears 24 is provided with an openingwhich is engaged by a small pin 26 mounted on the front end of each ofthe two sharpening elements 18 and 20. By means of this pin, independentrotation of the gear 24 and its associated sharpening element iseffectually prevented.

As will be clear from Fig. 5, the two gears 24, 24 are in mesh with eachother, and for this reason when the screw or shaft 19 is rotated bymeans of the handle 22, the shaft 15 is rotated in the oppositedirection on account of the action of the engaging gears 24, 24.

Rotatably mounted between the front and rear walls 12 and 13 of theframe 11, is a rotatable blade holder 27, on which near the front endthereof is fixedly mounted a pinion 28. This pinion 28 lies in a planein front of the plane of the two gears 24, 24. Rigidly mounted on thegear 24 which is associated with the sharpening element 20, is the gearsector 29 which is adapted to intermittently engage the pinion 28.

The ratio of the gear teeth of the sector 29 and the pinion 28 is suchthat on each revolution of the sharpening element 20, the blade holder27 is given a half revolution.

The blade holder 27 is provided with the pins 30 which are adapted topass through the openings 31 in the double-edged razorblade 32 when thisblade is placed in position on the holder. The clamping member 33,having the openings 34, is placed over the razor blade 32. A hole 35passes longitudinally through the clamping member 33 and a hole 36passes through each of the pins 30, these holes 36 registering with hole35 when the clamping member is placed in position. A hole 37 passesthrough the shoulder member 38 of the holder 27 and also through thejournal 39. When the blade 32 and the clamping member 33 are placed inposition on the holder 27, the locking pin 40 having a bent end orhandle 41, is passed through the hole 37 of the holder 27, through thehole 35 in the clamping member 33, and through the holes 36 in the pins30. It will be apparent that in this way the holder 27 of blade 32 andthe clamping member 33 are securely locked together.

As shown in Figs. 1, 4, and 6, a spring 42 is mounted on the inner sideof the rear wall 13 at its end 43, whereas its free end is bent to forma semi-circular loop 44 which engages the inner side of the wall 13 andthe shoulder portion 38 of the holder 27, respectively. It will thus beevident that the spring 42 performs two functions: first, it preventsfree rotation of the holder 27 when the edges of the blade 32 aredisengaged from the sharpening elements 18 and 20, as will be explainedhereafter; and at the same time this spring serves to preventlongitudinal movement of the holder 27 toward the rear wall of the mainframe 11, the holder 27 thus being held strictly in its proper position,it being possible at the same time to move the holder 27 longitudinallytoward the rear wall 13, under the circumstances which will be describedhereafter.

As shown most clearly in Figs. 6 and 7, each of the sharpening elements18 and 20 consists of a. round wooden block 45, which is mutilated orcut away on its periphery to form the recess 46. The pen hery of eachsharpening roll is provide with a strop 47 of leather or other similarmaterial. It'will be evident that as the sharpening elements arerotated, the peripheries will pass in the direction away from the holder27 containing the razor blade 32.

When the blade 32 is placed in position on the holder 27, the sharpeningelements 18 and 20 are preferably rotated to a position so that when theblade 32 is laced on the holder 27, the edges of the b ade will not comein contact with the peripheries of the sharpening elements.

As the two sharpening elements 18 and 20 are rotated by turning thehandle 22, the two edges of the blade 32 will be forced upwardly bythesharpening elements and the pressure exerted on these elements willbe caused by the resiliency of the blade itself. That portion of theperiphery of each sharpening element which is adjacent to the recess 46and comes in contact with the edge of the blade 32 during the latterpart of the rotation of the sharpening element, is 5 made of a graduallydecreasing radius so that the pressure exerted b the edges of the bladeon the sharpening e ements gradually decreases, thus avoiding a suddenrelease of pressure on the blade when its edges reach the recesses 46.The strop 47 at this portion of each sharpening element is preferablyturned inwar ly at 48.

When. the edges of the blade are clear of the peri heries of the twosharpening elements, t e gear sector 29 engages the pinion 28 and theblade holder 27 is given a half revolution the blade 32 turning withinthe recesses After the blade is turned, the sharpening elements againengage the two edges of the blade but on the opposite side of the bladeto that which was previously in contact with the shar ening elements.Inasmuch as the action the gear sector 29 on the inion 28 is completedbefore the edges of t e blade 32 are engaged by the sharpening elements,it will be clear that a free rotation of the blade-holder 27 at thispoint would be very disadvantageous, and it is to prevent such a freerotation that the spring 42 above mentioned is used, the loop portion 44of this s ring afl'ordin friction on the journal-89 o the blade-ho] er27.

' It is very desirable that a device of this kind be so made that it canbe easily taken apart and assembled. After the blade 32 and the clampingmember 38 have been removed by withdrawal of the locking pin 40, thewood screw 15 is next disenga fromthe sharpening element 1 8, andwithdrawn 40 throu the front wall 12 of the main frame 11. e sharpeningelement 18 may now be removed from the frame 11, the pin 26 enga mg theopening in the gear 24 bein with rawn from this opening. The ear 2 45 isreadily removed from the frame 1 after the sharpening element 18 hasbeen removed. The next operation consists iii-unscrewing the screw orshaft 19 from the sharpening element 20' and removing this sharpeningelement and its associated gear 24 in exactly the ea. c manner as inconnection with the sharpening element 18. In order toremove the holder27, the spring 42- is dep so that the loop 44 is disenga ed from the llournal 39 and maybe shi from the kolprnal to the main body of the hohhr.

e holder 27 may now' be moved longimdinally of its ownaxis towardtherear a; 13 ahndhthe journaled end 28' of the 0 er w s enga esan o iin the front wall 12 is th ereby di g from "the same. This end'28" atthe o der 27 is much smaller than the end 39, which is "itselfconsiderably smaller than the 0 ening 39' in which it has its bearing. 1

the holder 27 is removed, there is thus ample room to raise its frontend, and then withdraw the end 39 from hole 39 without any bindingaction. The various parts may, of course, be assembled in a mannerexactly opposite to that which has just been described.

Referring to the modified form of razor blade sharpener shown in Figs. 9to 13 inelusive, the construction of the parts will be readily' aparent. The sharpener is made in exactly the same manner as the formwhich we have already described with certain minor changes which residechiefly in the form of the blade holder and clamping member and meansfor holding the clampin member in contact with the blade. The bidsholder 27 is constructed in much the same manner previously described aswill be clearly apparentby reference articular] Y to Figs. 11 and 12.Instead 0 using a c ampin member 33, however, which is held in positionby the locking pin 40, the clamping member 49 is hinged to the bladeholder 27 by means of the pin 50. As clearly shown in Fi 11 and 12, theblade 32 is placed in position on the pins-orposts 50 of the bladeholder 27 and the. clamping member 49 is'then moved downwardly from itselevated position until the blade 32 is securely gripped between theblade holder 27 and the clamping member 49. The free end of clampingmember 49 has an extension 51 which fits within a corresponding oove inthe end 52 of the blade holder27 sot at when the clamping member isbrought into its blade retaining position, the end 520i the blade holder27 and the extension 51 form a substantially perfect circle, thiscondition being most clearly shown in Fig. 13. The end 52 of the bladeholder 27 bears against the spring 42 which tends to force the bladeholder and the clamping member in an upward direction. ln'order tocounter-act this action, the lockin member 53 pivoted at 54 is provided.This locking member which has a surface 55 adapted to engage the uppersurface of the ends 51 and 52 of the clamping member 49 and the bladeholder 27, res ctively, is moved to the right as in- 116 dicate in Fi 10and13 when it IS desired to raise the c ampin member 49. The latteroperation is readfiy performed inasmuch as it will be noted that the end51 rejects slightly beyond end 52. When the b ade has 120 been placed inposition, the locking member 7 53 is readily moved into the positionshown in Figs. 9, 10 and 13, by means of its projectien 56' and tinupward pressure on the end of the blade holder serves to securely 126hold the locking member in position. In the same way that the opming 39shown most clearly in Fig. 2 is mdde somewhat larger than the end '89 inorder to allow freedom of motion, the. opening 58, shown in dotted 8lines in Fig. 13, is made considerably larger than the ends 51 and 52when the same are brought into their operative positions.

I ave found that in certain cases it is desirable to make the frame orcasing of the razor blade sharpener so that it surrounds the mechanismon all of its sides except the top, and the modification shown in Figs.9 to 13 inclusive is constructed in this manner. Except as explainedabove, the construction and operation of the modification which I haveust explained, is exactly the same as the form of razor blade sharpenerwhich I described in connection with Figs. 1 to 8 inclusive.

It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that many changes couldbe made in the various parts of the devices which I have describedwithout departing from the spirit of my invention.

What I claim is:

1. In a sharpening-device of the character described, the combination ofa pair of rotatable sharpening-elements, means to revolve said elements,and a holder adapted to hold resilient blade-means with two cuttingedges in flexed concave condition with the same sides of bothcutting-edges in cooperative relation with said sharpenin elements, theaxis of said holder being immovable away from the axes of thesharpening-elements during the sharpening operation, whereb the degreeof fiexure is constant for all bla e-means, substatially as described.

2. In a sharpening device of the character described, the combination ofa pair of rotatable shar ening-elements, means to revolve said e ements,and a holder adapted to hold resilient blade-means with twocutting-edges in flexed concave condition with the same sides of bothcutting-edges in cooperative relation with said sharpening-elements, theaxis of said holder being immovable away from the axes of the sharpeningelements during the sharpening operation, the yielding-pressure of theblade-edges on the sharpening-elements residing solely in the resiliencyof said blade-means, substantially as described.

3. In a sharpening-device of the character described, the combination ofa frame or casing, a pair of sharpening elements having interruptedcylindrical operative faces rcvolubly mounted in said frame or casing,means to rotate said elements, and a bladeholder having an axis fixedduring the shar ning operation and ada ted to un yieldihgly ho dresilient razorlade means with two cutting-edges in flexed engagementwith the operative faces of said elements during their rotation, theyielding pressure of the blade-means on the sharpening-elements residingsolely in the resiliency said blade-means, substantial] as described.

4. In a sharpening-device o the character described, the combination ofa pair of rotatable sharpening elements having interrupted operativefaces, a rotatable blade holder having an axis of rotation immovableaway from the axes of rotation of the sharpening elements during thesharpening operation to unyieldingly hold yielding razor-blade meanswith two cutting-edges in flexed engagement with the operative faces ofsaid elements, and means for periodically rotating the blade-holder whenthe interruptions in the operative faces of the shar ening-elements comeopposite the blade-edges, substantially as described.

5. In a sharpening-device of the character described, the combination ofa pair of rotatable sharpening elements having operative facesinterrupted by recesses and also having fixed axes of rotation, arotatable bladeholder having an axis of rotation immovable away from theaxes of rotation of the sharpening-elements during the sharpeningoperation whereby to unyieldingly hold a doubleedged resilient blade inflexed concave engagement with the operative faces of said elements, andmeans for rotating said bladeholder when the face interruptions of thesharpening-elements come opposite the blade-edges, substantially asdescribed.

6. In a device of the class described, the combination of a pair ofrotatable sharpen ing-elements having fixed axes of rotation, eachelement having a recess in its periphery,

means for rotating said elements in opposite directions, a rotatableblade-holder adapted to contain a double-edged blade to be sharpened,said blade on its opposite edges engaging the peripheries of thesharpening-ole ments, the axis of said holder being immovable away fromsaid sharpening elements during the sharpening operation, friction meansfor restraining the free rotation of said holder when the blade isdisengaged from said sharpening elements, and means for rotating saidblade holder and its contained blade within said recesses when thesharpening-elements are rotated to such a position that the edges of theblades are disengaged from the sharpening-elements, substantially asdescribed.

7. In a blade-sharpeningdevice, the combination of a frame, a shaftrevolubly mounted in said frame with a fixed axis of rotation, asharpening-element rigidly mounted upon said shaft, a blade-holdermounted in said frame and adapted to rotate about an axis immovable awayfrom said.

sharpening element. during the sharpening operation, friction-meansbearing upon said holder to prevent free rotation thereof when the bladeis disengaged from the sharpening element, and means to actuate saidshaft and holder, substantially as described.

8. In a blade-sharpening device, the combination of a frame, a pair ofsharpeninzr elements having interrupted operative faces mounted in saidframe and revoluble about fixed axes, a blade-holder mounted in saidframe and adapted to revolve about an axis immovable away from saidelements during the sharpening operation, a spring adapted to bear onsaid holder and by 1ts friction resist turning of the holder, and meansto rotate'said sharpening-elements and intermittently rotate theblade-holder, substantially as described.

9. In a blade-sharpening device, the combination of a frame, a shaftrevolubly mounted in said frame with a fixed axis of rotation, asharpenin -element rigidly mounted on said shaft, a b ade-holder mountedin said frame adapted to revolve about an axis immovable away from saidelement during the sharpening operation, a friction spring adapted toengage the holder and resist free rotation thereof, said friction springbeing also adapted to prevent lateral movement of the holder,disengagement of said spring from the holder permitting longitudinalmovement of the holder and its removal from the frame, and means toactuate said shaft and-holder, substantially as described.

10. In a blade-shar ening device, the combination of a mainrame, a pairof shafts revolubly mounted in said frame with fixed axes of rotation, apair of cylindrical sharpeners rigidly mounted on said shafts, each ofsaid Sharpeners having a recess in its periphery, a gear associated witheach of said Sharpeners, said gears being in mesh with each other, ablade-holder mounted in said frame and having an axis of rotationimmovable away from said Sharpeners during the sharpening operation,said holder being provided with a shouldered journal, a pinion rigidlymounted on said blade-holder, a gear sector mounted on one of said gearsand adapted intermittently to mesh with said pinion, thereby rotatingsaid holder when the sharpeners are in positions in which the blade maybe rotated within said recesses, and spring-friction means engaging theshouldered journal of said holder and thereby preventing free rotationof the same, said spring-means being also adapted to preventlongitudinal movement of said holder, substantially as described.

11. In a device of the character described, the combination of a pair ofrotatable sharpening-elements, each element having a recess in itsperiphery, a rotatable blade-holder, a clamping-member hinged to saidholder and adapted to retain the blade to be sharpened in connectiontherewith, a locking-member adapted to retain the clamping-member incontact with said blade-holder and to unyieldingly hold the blade holderagainst lateral movement away from said sharpening elements, theopposite-edges of said blade engaging said elements and therebypreventing rotation of said holder, and means for rotating saidblade-holder when the sharpening-elements are in such position that theedges of the blade are disengaged from their peripheries, substantiallyaS described.

GEORGE G. FLOYD.

Witnesses:

E. B. SHERZER, J. A. LAMONT.

